Lorna Johnson believes that one of the most important things an actor can bring into the room is his or her own unique energy. Johnson, who cast the series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman further explained, “When you are sitting in a room and reading numerous actors and someone walks in with a spark of unique energy, you can’t help but notice and respond positively.”
Johnson came to casting after getting her degree from Cal State Long Beach and then toiling at various jobs outside of entertainment. Her break into the industry came when she was hired as an assistant by Barbara Miller, the senior vice president of talent and casting at Warner Bros. Television.
As an assistant, Johnson worked on many shows, including the pilots of Friends, Dawson’s Creek and The Drew Carey Show; and the series Midnight Caller, Knots Landing and I’ll Fly Away. More recently, she has worked on the FX Series Wilfred.
I don’t get to the theatre as much as I’d like to. It’s difficult sometimes during the episodic season. I try to make a special effort when our shows are on hiatus. And yes, I think good acting can translate to any medium. When I see someone on stage who moves me, when the right role becomes available, I’ll bring that person in.
I look at every submission and if someone looks as though they might be right for a role, I’ll bring him in. But for the most part, we work through a combination of breakdown submissions, agent pitches, actors we are familiar with and suggestions from the producer or director.
I don’t think there is one single path to success. However, being prepared, if an opportunity comes your way, is important. Get as much training as you can— school, classes, theatre.
As we all know, there are a lot of negative things you have to deal with as an actor, especially the rejection - it’s part of the package. Best advice I could give is, try to keep a sense of balance in your life: friends, family, hobbies, etc. It’s so easy for this business to become all consuming. It’s hard for me too. When things get especially hectic and stressful, I try to remind myself what we do isn’t brain surgery.
I think every audition is important but you do have to keep it in perspective. And if you put too much pressure on yourself, it can affect your audition.
I think it takes great courage to be an actor. You’re constantly putting yourself on the line with each audition. That’s why I try to create a supportive environment in my office. I think that helps the actor do the best job he or she can do.
A couple of things come to mind. Don’t incorporate the casting director into the physical parts of the scene. There is no need to shake or grab a casting director during an audition. Keep some sense of distance. It doesn’t help your audition if the casting director or producers begin to focus more on the fact that the casting director might get hurt than on the actual reading. I also think that it’s better not to use props. They seem to get in the way of the actor more than they help. And never bring weapons to an audition!
So much of our work is, as is the case with most jobs, stressful and repetitive. But when I bring in an actor and I think they’re wonderful and the producers concur and the actor gets the role, I feel very gratified.
During my very first session as a casting director, we had to cast the role of a little boy. I read this child who had absolutely no experience but who knocked me out. He had incredible energy, was so likable and took direction very well. Because this was my first session, I obviously felt a great deal of pressure, and initially thought that there was no way I could bring in a total novice. Then I thought, “Everybody is taking a chance on me here, I should take a chance on him.” And I did. I brought him in and he was very good. The producers loved him and he landed the role. Since then he’s worked on numerous episodic shows and a feature film. Experiences like that are what I enjoy most about being a casting director.
In my opinion, it’s a very bad idea to dismiss the assistants. If an actor is rude to them, the casting director is going to hear about it, believe me. I think assistants can be another means for actors to get exposure to casting directors. When you mail flyers for a play you are doing, it would be a good idea to extend the invitation to also include the assistants. If I can’t make it to a play but my assistant goes and sees someone wonderful, he’ll let me know. And, of course, a lot of assistants end up as casting directors.
I think whatever you can do to learn about all the different aspects of the business, you should do. If an opportunity comes where you can watch the casting process from the other side, it will demystify the experience. You might find out that a lot of things you thought really mattered, actually don’t. I know actors will sometimes be sitting in a casting reception room trying to guess how the other actors are doing and how it’s going to affect them. For example, if another actor spends a lot of time in the audition, you might think they are favoring that actor when the reality may be that the actor is just talking a lot. Once you find out how some decisions are made, you can stop psyching yourself out for reasons that are not essential and just concentrate on your work.
Lorna Johnson
10201 W. Pico Blvd., Crafts Bldg., Ste. 430 Los Angeles, CA 90064